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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. charge — electricity
  3. cold — not warm
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. bore — to drill
  8. root — the cause
  9. fork — in a road
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. rash — a series
  12. hand — in cards
  13. net — for catching
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. charge — in control
  16. bore — to tire
  17. rash — hasty
  18. net — after costs
  19. root — of a plant
  20. cold — an illness
  21. charge — a price
  22. net — in sport
  23. hand — help
  24. root — of a word

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com